Pre-Purchase Building Inspections
An older Ballarat home checked from roof space to stumps under AS 4349.1 before you commit.
Read more →Goldfields weatherboards on stumps, heritage brick in the old town and new estates out west: we look at Ballarat homes the way this cold, wet climate tests them.
One of our inspectors will call you back. If it is urgent, call 1300 471 805.
Seven visits through a Ballarat build, each one booked before the next trade covers the work.
1 Bored piers After drilling and cage placement, while every hole is still open 
2 Slab pre-pour Steel, pods and pipes done, formwork braced, pour not yet started 
3 Frame Walls standing and trusses braced, before wrap or sarking closes it in 
4 Lock-up (pre-plaster) Roof, windows and cladding up, plasterboard not yet delivered 
5 Fixing Linings, doors, trims and cabinets fitted, painter yet to start 
6 Waterproofing Membrane on and cured, no tiles yet 
7 Pre-handover (PCI) Builder has notified completion and the final claim is pending An older Ballarat home checked from roof space to stumps under AS 4349.1 before you commit.
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Building and timber pest reports in one Ballarat visit, with decay and damp written up.
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Cracks, roof leaks, condensation and mould in Ballarat homes, measured and traced to a cause.
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A numbered list of what is unfinished or defective in your new Ballarat home, before the final claim is paid.
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Your Ballarat rental checked against all 15 Victorian minimum standards, with a repair list before it is listed.
Read more → A dated photo record of your Ballarat house before demolition or excavation starts next door.
Six stages, from the first phone call to questions after the report.
Old weatherboard on stumps, a brick home in Wendouree or a new build in Lucas: tell us the address and what worries you.
The online form returns a figure for that job before you agree to anything.
We arrange keys with the agent, owner or site supervisor and name the inspector who will attend.
Subfloor, roof space and walls checked where access is safe, with moisture readings where damp is suspected.
Each item photographed and explained in plain terms, in your inbox inside a day.
Talk any item through with the inspector while you negotiate, plan repairs or deal with the builder.
We hold 4.8 from Google reviews across Victoria. Read them on Google →
Very through report & great communication
Very good detailed report as always Ty! Thank you...
Ty is great and professional, we are very happy with his inspection service!
As always, a very detailed report
We inspect every estate in Ballarat 3350 and the surrounding suburbs of Wendouree, Sebastopol, Mount Clear, Buninyong, Mount Helen, Ballarat East, Brown Hill and Miners Rest. Our local inspectors are on site in Ballarat most weeks, so travel never adds to the price.
Timber stumps, bearers, damp and airflow beneath Victorian and Edwardian Ballarat houses, and how far a visual pre-purchase inspection can go.
What a pre-purchase inspection finds on roofs that have seen a century of Ballarat winters, from broken tiles to gutters that hold water.
How to fit a building inspection in before auction day or inside a cooling off period on a Ballarat house, and what to send us so it runs on time.
Building new in Ballarat Estates in Lucas, Alfredton and Delacombe, a cool wet winter, and the stage items that get covered first.Read more → Buying in Ballarat Weatherboards on stumps, brick veneer from the 1970s, and estate homes still settling in. Each fails differently.Read more → 
Growth and development A gold rush city with a planned western growth front and a northern precinct in the works.Read more → 
Permits, council and disputes Heritage overlays, bushfire controls, the building surveyor and the path from a defect to VCAT.Read more → 
Old diggings, basalt and clay Volcanic plateau in the west, worked alluvial ground in the east, and the odd forgotten shaft.Read more → Termites and timber decay in a cool climate Cold winters slow termites down but keep timber damp. Rot and conducive conditions still matter.Read more → What we actually find in Ballarat Unsealed gaps on bushfire rated homes, mould in roof spaces, veneer cracks and stage items left open.Read more → 
Site conditions: frost, rain, wind and fire Climate zone 7, frosty winters, an August rain peak, and bushfire overlays on part of the municipality.Read more → Instant online pricing, or talk to the booking team on 1300 471 805.
It is priced per job: the type of inspection, the size of the house and, for older homes, how much subfloor and roof space there is to cover. Request a quote online and the fee for your address comes back straight away.
Yes, wherever the crawl space is safe to enter. Stumps, bearers, joists, ventilation and damp in the soil are looked at from underneath, and any section we cannot reach is named in the report.
The whole City of Ballarat, from Ballarat Central, Wendouree and Sebastopol to the western estates at Lucas, Alfredton, Delacombe, Winter Valley, Bonshaw and Smythes Creek, plus Buninyong, Mount Clear and Miners Rest.
Most Ballarat jobs are booked within two to four business days. If a cooling off period, auction or pour date is close, say so when you book and we plan around it.
Within 24 hours of the inspection, as a photographed report you can forward to an agent, a builder or your conveyancer.
It shifts the emphasis. Ballarat sits in NCC climate zone 7, with frosts, fog and its heaviest rain in August, so we pay close attention to subfloor damp, condensation in roof spaces, mould, insulation and how water is shed from the house.
Yes. A pre-purchase inspection reports the condition of the building whether or not a Heritage Overlay applies. Whether repairs or changes need a planning permit is a question for the City of Ballarat.
Yes. We carry out slab, frame, lock-up, waterproofing, fixing and handover inspections on new builds across the western growth area, each booked before the next trade covers the work.
Usually. Cooler weather slows termites but does not rule them out, and timber decay is common in damp subfloors and old weatherboards. Our building and pest visit looks for both on the same morning.
A registered building inspector with practitioner registration through the Building and Plumbing Commission, insured, and independent of agents and builders.
Pre-purchase reports follow AS 4349.1 and timber pest reports AS 4349.3. New builds are measured against the NCC, AS 2870, AS 1684, AS 3740 and the Guide to Standards and Tolerances 2015.
No. A defect report is written for you and the builder. If the matter goes to BPC dispute resolution or VCAT, you need an expert witness report prepared for the tribunal.
Call the inspector about any item. We explain what is serious, what is maintenance and what to raise with the vendor, agent or builder.